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Studies involving individuals with type 2 diabetes have determined that lowering their blood pressure protected their kidneys from renal disease.

It has been widely acknowledged that high blood pressure – especially when an individual has diabetes – can create very serious problems in the body including stroke, eye damage, cardiovascular issues and more. However, there is a particularly difficult problem with high blood pressure damaging the kidneys, especially in individuals with type 2 diabetes.

In a research study involving over 11,000 participants, researchers were trying to determine how lowering blood pressure – even lower than the normal 120/75 – would affect the kidneys. What they found was extremely encouraging. The researchers randomly assigned patients to a fixed combination of perindopril-indapamide or placebo.

The risk for kidney disease decreased by 21% in patients with BP–lowering treatment, according to the researchers. Lower rates of renal events/kidney problems were associated with lower systolic BP.

In another exciting discovery, renal disease was decreased in patients who did not initially have high BP. Risk for kidney disease was also reduced in patients with BP of 120/70.

These results raised the possibility that patients with type 2 diabetes should be considered for antihypertensive treatment even if they have normal BP, because bringing their blood pressure down to a low level – even lower than the suggested national “normal” numbers – could keep their kidneys from being damaged and keep them healthier longer.